Big Local theory of change
The Big Local theory of change was produced after a series of group discussions and interviews with Local
Trust and the other seven organisations (known as delivery partners) directly involved in setting up Big
Local. Their views, opinions and ideas have been brought together in this paper which sets out the Big
Local theory of change in more detail, including how the Big Local outcomes can be achieved.
To support this process Local Trust have used New Philanthropy Capital’s Theory of Change process
(http://www.thinknpc.org/publications/theory-of-change/) to outline how we suggest Big Local will meet its
intended outcomes. The theory of change considers a range of inputs and activities that help us take steps
towards meeting programme objectives, while making clear the assumptions and context behind Big Local.
Attached at appendix 1 is the logic chain used by Local Trust and its delivery partners that explains this
process followed.
What is Big Local?
Big Local is a programme that brings together all the local talent, ambitions, skills and energy from
individuals, groups and organisations who want to make their area an even better place to live. It is
supported by a £200m Big Lottery Fund endowment, which seeks to achieve four main outcomes over at
least ten years in 150 areas. The four outcomes for the programme are:
communities will be better able to identify local needs and take action in response to them
people will have increased skills and confidence, so that they continue to identify and respond to
needs in the future
the community will make a difference to the needs it prioritises
people will feel that their area is an even better place to live
Assumptions
Big Local was developed based on a number of assumptions and lessons from previous programmes - a
number of which are outlined in detail in Local Trust’s ‘Creating lasting change’ paper. Some of the basic
assumptions about Big Local are:
residents have a capacity and desire to drive change, and can achieve lasting and positive changes for
the areas where they live
previous models have failed to ultimately transfer power and control to residents; the Big Local funding
model will put residents in the driving seat by giving them power over decisions made about money
building networks, relationships, support and expertise will facilitate and foster resident involvement in
decision-making activities
investment in people, communities and locally driven enterprise and investment will support sustainable
positive change
Enabling factors
The following factors need to exist in Big Local areas for positive change to be possible in areas.
volunteer and resident participation
long term investment
direct funding processes to areas and residents
a shared vision that directs action
Aim
The aim of the Big Local programme as defined by Local Trust and its delivery partners is to ensure:
“People are connected, people have choices and people are supported to achieve lasting change in
the places where they live”
This statement aims to explain what we are trying to achieve through the support we offer to Big Local
areas.
Activities
The support and activities Big Local offers to areas aims to encourage, develop and facilitate environments
where change can occur. The support provided by Local Trust and its delivery partners include:
financial investment of at least £1 million to each of the 150 Big Local areas over at least ten
years
guidance, direction and support (through Big Local reps, Local Trust and its partners)
opportunities for connections and networking between areas so that communities can learn from
each other
advice and information that will support people locally in identifying options and implementing
choices for action to make progress on priorities
a structured approach to identifying priorities and supporting change processes, developing
locally created needs using asset-based assessments, leading to community-led visions and
planning
support for individuals to develop skills and knowledge, offering options for people to participate
and gain from new experiences
Outputs
The activities and support offered to Big Local areas aims guide and support them through processes that
strengthen relationships and enable resident-led decision-making. This will also build resident
understanding of how to develop ideas into projects and activities.
The theory of change outlines the types of outputs and outcomes that we expect from the support that Big
Local offers. This includes:
connections: new connections will be established between and across Big Local areas through
people coming together in new ways via a range of activities and conversations
knowledge: new knowledge will develop in Big Local areas across a wide variety of themes and
subject matter, whether it’s an increased understanding of resident-led processes, how to
engage residents and other people in Big Local areas, and/or generating new awareness about a
particular issue or need. This outcome is directly supported by peer-to-peer learning events run
by the NANM or by knowledge sharing activities through Small Change, Capacity Global and
UnLtd.
options: people in Big Local areas develop options for themselves and set local priorities as a
result of knowledge, awareness and new connections. For example, options might emerge as a
way to solve a local problem through a relationship that has been developed between the Big
Local area and a local organisation.
skills: through peer-to-peer learning or other learning experiences residents and others gain
skills and increased social capital. New capabilities may include:
formal skills in IT
employability skills gained from chairing meetings
managing projects
public speaking
working with people
developing partnerships and relationships, and
communicating needs and priorities
Intermediate outcomes
Local Trust believes that if people have the skills, confidence and the necessary tools to support and
develop their Big Local priorities, they will be empowered to take action in response to those priorities
identified. The following intermediate outcomes are expected to follow:
relationships: important relationships are developed within Big Local areas between residents
and organisations; people who hold power; people who have access to power and decisions;
and, people who can help solve problems. Achieving this outcome implies that Big Local steering
groups or partnerships will create connections and networks of both individuals and organisations
that have the ability to support and lead change.
influencing: new relationships, connections and networks will create greater opportunities for
influencing. In addition, Big Local partnerships will use their funding to have a greater influence
over what happens locally and have an influence in areas where previously they may not have
had a voice.
priorities and plans: priorities for Big Local areas will be developed through resident-led
processes and they will self-identify the relevant issues, themes and actions to target. Local Trust
expects Big Local residents to identify these according to need and to put in place clear
strategies for building on assets, resolving issues and tackling challenges in order to achieve
positive lasting change in their area.
As a consequence, we expect these intermediate outcomes to support people to achieve the Big Local
outcome of:
“Increased skills and confidence, so that areas continue to identify and respond to needs in the
future”
As Big Local areas identify priorities, explore options and make choices the following intermediate
outcomes will also occur:
taking action: as people in Big Local areas take action to achieve the priorities identified in their
visions and plans, they will begin delivering activities through having conversations and working
with a range of different people to progress their plan and projects.
choices: through Big Local we hope residents will develop the ability to influence and develop
options for their areas and be able to make more choices about how things are done in ways that
meet their needs.
greater control: Big Local residents having increased knowledge, choice, influence, power and
stronger relationships ultimately leads to greater control. The support given to Big Local areas
aims to develop a stronger and more active resident voice in all 150 areas. The process aims to
encourage people not to be simply recipients of services and projects, but to be the drivers and
designers of change.
on-going influence: people in Big Local areas will be encouraged to find and develop
sustainable ways to maintain residents’ role as active citizens who have a say. Their voices will
be developed and heard so that they will be reflected in the decisions made about the place
where they live. This will lead to lasting change as we believe that if residents have the
foundation of these skills they can repeat these processes in response to any new issue or need
that arises.
As a result of the intermediate outcomes of increased action, choices and control in Big Local areas, we
expect areas can meet the outcome:
“communities will be better able to identify local needs and take action in response to them”
Outcomes
Collectively, over the longer term (up to 15 years), Local Trust expects these intermediate outcomes to
have a positive effect in Big Local areas. Through their achievements (described above) we anticipate that
residents in Big Local areas will continue to make a difference to the needs that have been prioritised in
their plans and ultimately achieve the four Big Local outcomes.
Just how people in Big Local areas will make a difference to the needs they have prioritised remains to be
seen. Through its research and learning work, Local Trust will find out whether the activities and outputs in
the 150 Big Local areas (over 10-15 years), support a process of change that successfully leads to the four
Big Local outcomes. Whether this is successful will depend on what Big Local residents perceive as a
lasting positive change in their areas. This will be assessed by Big Local partnerships each year through a
process of self-evaluation where they will decide how to measure difference or change in their areas.
At this early stage of Big Local we can only speculate about the types of things that will make a difference,
or what will provide the evidence of change. We know that we do not have all the answers about the long
term outputs or impacts that will be achieved in Big Local areas. Some of the ideas which have already
been put forward by Big Local areas present a starting point of identifying where they will be able to make a
difference to the priorities that they have chosen to address. Some of the ideas in development are:
Big Local areas owning and controlling a greater share of community assets
Big Local areas setting priorities and developing solutions around local issues such as access to
credit and loans
Big Local areas using social investment for housing, developing local cooperative housing
projects that provide good quality housing services, with residents developing their own networks
for support
Big Local areas doing things for themselves
Big Local areas increasing opportunities, pathways and access to training, jobs, business and
services for residents
Big Local areas developing and formalising governance models and developing resident-led
processes on their own terms
This theory of change broadly indicates a progression through the Big Local intermediate outcomes. We
recognise that the nature of community development and regeneration is such that new ideas, new
residents, or external issues will affect Big Local areas, so the course of change we have outlined is not a
linear process.
Additionally, policy and service changes that may occur over the next 15 years including funding, tax,
welfare and availability of, and access to, support will also influence the process and impact of the Big
Local programme. As such, it is difficult to predict how these external influences will affect the 150 areas
over time. However, if Big Local areas achieve the intermediate outcomes; if they are able to achieve
priorities and deliver their plans; if people feel they have developed skills, connections, relationships and
knowledge along their Big Local journey; we believe they will be empowered to achieve the overall Big
Local outcome of making their area an even better place to live.
Evidence - how will we know?
So, how will we know that Big Local is on the right track? One way of checking progress is to use the above
intermediate outcomes to develop a set of indicators. An indicator is information which shows whether
something is happening. Local Trust will use the indicators we develop to determine if Big Local is
achieving the four Big Local outcomes and the ultimate aim.
These indicators will reflect research questions that will explore whether a particular intermediate outcome
is occurring with areas and across the programme. For example to test for:
Increased knowledge - we may ask:
are people in Big Local areas accessing learning events?
do Big Local residents feel they can access information they need or can make informed
choices?
what choices are Big Local residents making?
what influences the choices made by Big local residents?
New connections or networks - we may ask:
how are Big Local partnerships and their support infrastructures developing?
who is on the Big Local partnerships? How are residents in Big Local areas involved?
how are Big Local partnerships involving people from beyond the partnership in the Big Local
area?
what new connections are being made through Big Local events, activities and projects? And,
for what benefit?
Residents having greater influence - we may ask:
what have people in Big Local areas been able to do so far? What has this achieved?
what else has helped or hindered progress?
have new relationships been established? With whom? What have these achieved?
do Big Local residents feel they have access to more information or people that make
decisions?
do Big Local residents feel they can have an influence over issues that affect them and their
area?
Next steps…
Over the next year Local Trust is working with research partners, Community Development Foundation
(CDF) and Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR) to expand on this theory of change to include an
outcomes framework to support further evaluation and learning work. We will also continue to report on the
progress of Big Local against the 4 programme outcomes and the intermediate outcomes described here.
Please check our website for regular news and updates on Big Local learning.
theory of change
connections
knowledge
support
People will
have
increased
skills and
confidence, so
that they
continue to
identify and
respond to
needs in the
future
new skills
Communities
will be better
able to identify
local needs
and take
action in
response to
them
control of
assets
relationships
influencing
guidance
options
taking action
The
community
will make a
difference to
the needs it
prioritises.
?
priorities and
plans
choices
greater
control
decisionmaking powers
People will feel
that their area is
an even better
place to live.
Appendix 1: New Philanthropy Capital’s theory of change
process – logic chain
Source: Kail, Lumley, Theory of Change, New Philanthropy Capital, 10th April 2012, page 4. Found at
http://www.thinknpc.org/publications/theory-of-change/
Enabling
factors: things
that have to
exist for
theory of
change to
happen
Activities: what
the
organisation’s
services are
Outputs: what
the service
provides
Outcomes:
changes that
the
organisation
wants to
happen
Evidence of
assumptions: why
you think one
outcome will lead
to another
Ultimate goal:
what the
organisation is
trying to
achieve
Local Trust
020 7812 5456
[email protected]
www.localtrust.org.uk
The endowment for the Big Local programme is held by the Big Local Trust and overseen by
Local Trust. The Big Local Trust was established by the Big Lottery Fund with a National Lottery
grant of £196,873,499.
If you need this document in other formats or a community language please get in touch
with Local Trust and we will help you.
Published by Local Trust, Version 1: April 2013
Local Trust company no. 7833396
Local Trust charity no. 1147511
Big Local Trust charity no. 1145916
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